Ratha Saptami is the seventh day of the waxing Moon in the lunar month of Magha, which falls in the Malayalam month of Makaram or Kumbham. It is the day the Sun is said to turn his chariot north. Kerala keeps it quietly, with a bath at sunrise, an offering of water to the Sun, and the recitation of the Aditya Hridayam; in Tamil Brahmin homes of Palakkad the bath is taken with erukku leaves.
The story
The Sun is worshipped in Kerala more in daily habit than on festival days: the Surya Namaskaram at dawn, the lamp turned east. Temples to him alone are very few, and the best known, at Adityapuram, keeps Sundays and this day.
In the Ramayana, the sage Agastya teaches Rama the Aditya Hridayam on the battlefield as the hymn that brings victory; in Kerala it is chanted daily in many homes.
How it is kept
- Bath at sunriseFacing east, at home or at a temple tank.
- ArghyamWater is offered to the Sun from cupped hands.
- Aditya HridayamRecited after the bath.
- PayasamA sweet offering is made to the Sun and shared.
Why this date
Ratha Saptami is the seventh tithi of the bright fortnight of the lunar month of Magha, on the day it is present at sunrise.
Ratha Saptami in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sunday | |
| 2027 | Saturday | |
| 2028 | Thursday | |
| 2029 | Monday | |
| 2030 | Saturday | |
| 2031 | Wednesday |
More Kerala festivals
15 JanuaryMakaravilakkuമകരവിളക്ക്
6 MarchMaha Shivaratriമഹാശിവരാത്രി
15 AprilSri Rama Navamiശ്രീരാമനവമി
20 December 2026Swargavathil Ekadasiസ്വർഗ്ഗവാതിൽ ഏകാദശി
8 November 2026Deepavaliദീപാവലി
15 AprilVishuവിഷു
Where to see Ratha Saptami
In Kerala
- Adityapuram Surya TempleKeralaThe only temple in Kerala where the Sun is the presiding deity, near Kaduthuruthy.
- Padmanabhaswamy Temple, ThiruvananthapuramKeralaBuilt so that at the equinoxes the setting Sun passes through each window of the tower in turn.
- KanyakumariTamil Nadu borderThe cape just beyond Kerala where sunrise and sunset are both seen over the sea.
Across India
- KonarkOdishaThe temple built as the Sun's chariot.
- TirumalaAndhra PradeshSeven processions on seven vahanas between sunrise and night.
- Suryanar KovilTamil NaduThe Sun's shrine among the nine planetary temples.